Melnyk-owned Senators preparing to bid Karlsson farewell

Or are they just going to offer him a contract extension for appearance sake?

I think it could be the latter.

Here’s why:

When GM Pierre Dorion told reporters the Senators dressing room was “broken” a couple of days after trading Mike Hoffman, he didn’t say it is now fixed. It’s naive to think that one player and one player alone was responsible for the mess, even if his fiancee might be guilty of viciously harassing and cyber-bullying the captain’s wife.

There has to be more to it.

Hypothetically speaking, what if the Monika Caryk-Melinda Karlsson feud runs deeper than has been alleged? We don’t know all the details. What if there was some nastiness coming from both sides?

And what if another player’s wife is aligned with Caryk? What if it’s a 90-10, 70-30 or even 50-50 split?

Would Dorion trade a portion or half the room to appease the Karlssons? Would that proviso be added to the contract offer?

Probably not.

It would be much easier to low-ball Karlsson by making him the same $8 million-for-eight years offer that a fine defenceman (with no Norris Trophies) like John Carlson recently accepted from the Washington Capitals.

When Karlsson declined, you could explain to the fan base that a small market team did its best to keep its superstar, that the ball was left in his court, but now it would regrettably have to shake hands on one of the trade offers for him.

Caryk’s friends among the Senators wives would be satisfied, and Dorion could justifiably fill some holes and stock his shelves.

It’s just a theory.

Another is that Karlsson just wants to get out of Dodge as fast as possible. Even if the Senators could somehow present him the $88 million over eight years the Los Angeles Kings are going to give Drew Doughty.

Being part of a rebuild might not scare Karlsson off — it took Alex Ovechkin 13 seasons to win the Cup in Washington, and it sure looked like it was worth the wait when he did — but there are significant differences between the teams in the capital cities of the two largest countries on the continent.

Most notably, ownership.

Ted Leonis once said the only regret he had in signing Ovechkin to a 13-year, $124-million deal is that he didn’t sign him for 15 years. Eugene Melnyk does not think that way.

If he did, Daniel Alfredsson would never have worn a Detroit Red Wings sweater.

There’s a chance Karlsson wants to exit stage left the way Alfredsson did (twice), primarily because of the man currently sitting in the organization’s highest chair. Because of the money, or lack thereof, but also the unstable environment largely created by Melnyk.

How much longer does Melnyk remain the team’s owner? If it was up to him, forever. He craves the status that comes with it. The fans and business community in Ottawa might be fed up with his antics, but to his friends in Barbados and Toronto he remains a big deal.

But for the Senators fans, there are rumours of men with much deeper pockets are knocking at the door. Melnyk knows this, and at some point he’s surely going to give them what they want.

If it was sooner, Karlsson might remain a Senator.

If the team was owned by someone else, and the strong speculation Alfredsson would be a part of the new group held true, Karlsson would be reaching for a pen. But that window is closing fast, and there are those close to the situation who believe he now just wants to get away from all the “craziness” here.

Who could blame him for that?

The one hope for Senators fans who want Karlsson to stay put is the theory that Melinda wants to stay close to her family in Ottawa. While logical, the chance that it outweighs all other factors feels like an long shot.

What we think is the current plan for the most valuable asset the franchise has ever owned could very well work out. Trading Karlsson could reap a huge haul that, along with the development of prospects already in place, could turn the Senators into a contender or even a championship team.

In time.

For now, Ottawa is stuck with Eugene Melnyk and preparing to say good-bye to Erik Karlsson.

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